Representational images are very useful as a tool for visual guidance during a wide range of activities involved in industry, including, for example, manufacturing, product development, strategic planning, change implementation and verification and quality assurance and control. Representational images may range, for example, from schematic diagrams of electronic circuits or construction blueprints to fabric cutting diagrams, component layout and placement, and images on surfaces.
In the manufacturing sector, with the continual miniaturization and increasing complexity of many types of products and with the concern for cost minimization during the manufacturing process, many companies have converted to automated assembly or robotics to replace their human work force. Other companies have attempted to streamline and optimize the manufacturing process by hiring industrial engineers and/or consultants to restructure their assembly lines. This has led to single task assembly stations and additional employee training to increase efficiency and to reduce costs, errors, worker fatigue and product assembly time. In both automated manufacturing and optimized human assembly lines, however, schematic diagrams or other forms of printed instructions or plans, are necessary to assist in the manufacturing process.
Despite the improvements by manufacturing companies, through the use of automation or assembly line optimization, there remains room for additional improvement and further optimization of the manufacturing process. The present invention provides for further optimization and cost reductions in both the automated and optimized human manufacturing lines through the use of representational images, including holographic representational images.
For example, there are many products that require some hand assembly or hand wiring to complete their manufacture. In these instances, the representational image used during a manual assembly operation is a schematic diagram which guides the operator and which is used to confirm the proper assembly operation for the workpiece. These schematic diagrams must be placed within the visual range of the operator, and are usually posted directly in front of the operator. However, the position of the schematic diagram requires the operator to look away from the object being assembled to ascertain the proper step. After many repetitions of the same operation, operators usually commit the diagram to memory and rely on their memory to ensure the correctness of their activity, or they become familiar with the assembly step and no longer require a visual check of the schematic diagram to confirm proper assembly. However, with long work shifts, occasional distractions, and a variety of other factors, including human error, a certain percentage of the assembly is performed incorrectly. It is only at the next workstation or in the QA/QC test area that the error may be discovered. The workpiece is then either discarded or repaired, both options adding a significant cost to the total manufacturing costs.
In low technology areas, such as the garment industry, mass production of standardized or standard sized goods requires precision in the cutting of patterns. The cutting operations require the physical placement of a paper pattern on the fabric or material and the physical cutting of the fabric or material by hand operation. Many companies have switched to automated cutting machines to increase efficiency, while others have moved the cutting operations overseas to reduce costs. Many types of garments, however, require certain hand operations from cutting to assembly that either cannot be done by machine or if done by hand require extensive operator training or have high levels of operator error.
In other areas such as detailed painting and decal or preprinted material application, the operator must spend time prior to actually performing the painting or application to first outline or mark the areas to be painted or where the materials are to be applied or the various patterns using a picture or detailed layout diagram. Only when the outlining or marking is complete can the operator fill in the outlined areas with the proper colors or apply the materials.
These are just some of the many areas where schematic diagrams or representational images are currently being used, and where improvements are possible and feasible through the use of representational images, including holographic representational images according to the present invention.